Whalley Church Pulpit

Whalley Church Pulpit
Whalley Church Pulpit
Whalley Church Pulpit
267704
ECL20131029005
Whalley Church Pulpit
Whalley
Whalley Parish Church (more formally known as the Church of St Mary and All Saints) was historically the principal church in East Lancashire. Its Parish was the largest in Lancashire and second largest in England. This pre-eminence was reflected in its interior design and decoration.

The ornately carved pulpit in this image would seem to be an example, but it was installed only in 1909, replacing the previous "three-decker" pulpit.

The "three-deck" design was introduced after the Reformation and very commonly established in Anglican Churches.

The protestant form of worship focussed on the spoken word, in English rather than Latin, for all to understand. Therefore the pulpit assumed a new importance and was designed to be the centre of the congregation's attention. Preaching the Gospel was done from the top tier, reading of the Lessons was done from the middle tier with the bottom tier was reserved for the clerk who led the congregation's responses in prayer.

In the Victorian period, under the influence of several reform movements, especially perhaps the "Oxford Movement", there was a widespread desire to return to a more traditional "medieval" arrangement. New churches were built as if of ancient design and truly ancient Churches like Whalley returned to their original form. This pulpit represents that return.

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